The First Time....Nov. 22, 1963

 Dear  Friends,


I wanted to write a brief note on this important day.  It may be among  the most memorable days from my childhood.

Nov. 22, 1963 we were dismissed from school when  President Kennedy was shot. I  walked home and my mom was not surprised that I was home.

I  walked in right as (I think this is correct)  that Walter Cronkite said that the President was dead.   My mom  was sitting on a purple chair and was watching  our old black and white television set.  The most memorable part was that my mom was crying....It was the first of only a couple of times that I remember her crying.  The other time I remember her crying  was when a close friend was diagnosed with cancer.

These things stay with us.  The  tears from Nov. 22, 1963 stay with me for a number of reasons.   Who knew that era which is referred to as Camelot, was about to end?  Although  history may record the  Kennedy administration differently, I remember the scenes of the  Presidential family playing football on  the White House lawn ( it used to  be safe for the family to be outside).  That innocence ended on that fateful November day.

As we celebrate Thanksgiving tomorrow, I hope each of us can find something that reminds them of a period in their lives that was like Camelot.  I know I thought, at that time,  that anything and everything was possible. A relative gave me a book about Casey Stengel  ( you can look him up:-)) in which he inscribed, "to a future White  House or White Sox great."  It took me  years to realize that neither was a realistic goal.

Please read the lyrics below and let's hope  that someday soon, we can dream again of a world at peace and perhaps somewhere over the rainbow, dreams  can come true, Dorothy.

Happy Thanksgiving,

Rabbi Bruce Aft


ARTHUR:
It's true! It's true! The crown has made it clear.
The climate must be perfect all the year.

A law was made a distant moon ago here:
July and August cannot be too hot.
And there's a legal limit to the snow here
In Camelot.
The winter is forbidden till December
And exits March the second on the dot.
By order, summer lingers through September
In Camelot.
Camelot! Camelot!
I know it sounds a bit bizarre,
But in Camelot, Camelot
That's how conditions are.
The rain may never fall till after sundown.
By eight, the morning fog must disappear.
In short, there's simply not
A more congenial spot
For happily-ever-aftering than here
In Camelot.

Camelot! Camelot!
I know it gives a person pause,
But in Camelot, Camelot
Those are the legal laws.
The snow may never slush upon the hillside.
By nine p.m. the moonlight must appear.
In short, there's simply not
A more congenial spot
For happily-ever-aftering than here
In Camelot.  
Last Update: December, 02nd 2013
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